Laboratory > Advanced Drum Module Techniques

[DM10] THREE ZONE SNARE (with one dual zone trigger!)

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Hellfire:
VELOCITY SWITCHING BETWEEN LAYERS "A" AND "B"
(Pseudo Three Zone Triggering With One Input)[REDbox users please note that screens may be labeled/look differently within your module]
Theory of Operation:

How would you like have a three zone snare drum (head, cross stick, & rim shot) with only one TRS cable and only one dual zone trigger? Well it isn't possible to have a true three zone trigger (with one TRS cable) on the Alesis DM10, but we can fake it with velocity switching. For the purpose of this example we will focus on the snare rim. So, a piezo/piezo dual zone trigger must be used. The theory behind this trick is that cross stick tends to be a softer hit (lower velocity) than a rim shot (higher velocity). So, when hitting the rim at lower velocities we want to trigger a cross stick sound. As we hit the rim harder we want the sound to change to a rim shot sound. This type of set-up is possible on the DM10 at the instrument level. This means you will need to set this up for each kit you want to have a pseudo three zone snare on.

Set-up:

- First thing you will need to do is decide on a kit that you want a three zone snare. Than you want to locate the three sounds you wish to use together. For this example we will be using "Balt6x13" for the snare head, "Balt6x13 RS" for the rim shot, and "Balt6x13XStk" for the cross stick sound.

- Press the "INST" button and then "F1" (INST) to bring up the instrument edit mode. Scroll to "SnrHd" and go ahead and set the head sound ("Balt6x13", layer "A") on the Snare head zone of your trigger. Make sure you have nothing assigned to layer "B". We are done with the head set-up. Here's what this should look like:


- Cursor back up to the "SnrH" and using the scroll wheel (or the DOWN, UP buttons), scroll to "SnrRim". Set Layer "A" to "Balt6x13 RS". Here what your screen should look like:


- Now press the "INST" button to change to layer "B". Set that instrument to "Balt6x13XStk". Your screen should look like this:


- While still on "SnrRim" layer "B", press the "F2" (LVL) and set the 'Level" to 80 and "Dec" to 50. Your screen should look like this:


- Next press "F4" (MORE), then press "F2"(DYN). Set "Vel>Dec" to -99, set "Vel>Level" to 60. Your screen should look like this:


- Press "F4" (BACK) and you should be back at the instrument select screen. Press the "INST" button to change back to layer "A". Your screen should look like this:


- Now, press the "F2" (LVL) and set the "Level" to 99 and "Dec" to 01. Your screen should look like this:


- Next press "F4" (MORE), then press "F2" (DYN). Set "Vel>Dec" to 99, set "Vel>Level" to 99. Your screen should look like this:


- Press "F3" (OTHR) and make sure Playback is set to "POLY".


At this point you should now have a pseudo three zone snare. Your lower velocity hits on the rim of your snare should now trigger layer "B" "Balt6x13XStk" which is your cross stick sound. As you hit the rim harder, it should now gradually change to layer "A" "Balt6x13 RS" which is your rim shot sound.

Additional Thoughts

You might be asking yourself, can I do this with my toms as well? Yes, you can. The DM10 does have a set of sounds that you can use with your tom to have pseudo three zone toms as well. There is a small catch. The only true tom rim sound in the DM10 is the "Temp Rim" sound. For that reason you will need to change the pitch and tone of the "Temp Rim" for each of the different tom sizes you have in your set-up so it more closely sounds like the given size you are trying to achieve.

This technique can be used all over your drum kit. Just think of the things you can do with cymbals and synth sounds. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination.

Background/related links:
Alesis DM10 Pro/Studio
DM10: Vel>Filter

Th3R00st3r:
Thank you for this. Just this tip opens up a whole new realm of possibilities that I hadn't even thought of. Of course, I haven't even had my kit a month yet.  :D

Hellfire:

--- Quote from: Th3R00st3r on February 04, 2014, 10:58:49 AM ---Thank you for this. Just this tip opens up a whole new realm of possibilities that I hadn't even thought of. Of course, I haven't even had my kit a month yet.  :D

--- End quote ---

This is actually one of my favorite tricks to program on the DM10. It adds a lot to the realism to the performance. It was born out of the fact that Roland drum modules have three zone triggering on their snare triggers. The happy accident here is, that using Alesis we can do the same with the tom triggers.

JimmyB:
Good stuff. Thx, keep it coming
JimmyB

Pier:
Thank you very much Phil, this one is fantastic. Cannot wait to check it out on my DM10 snare...   ;)

Really like this new "technical" part of the forum (I was kinda "absent" for a long time due to my parents' health problems, but now I hope to gain a little more spare time for music).
Cheers

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